Fingers too sore to practice like I want to!

I think everyone heals at a different rate but probly a couple days.. I would suggest not practicing quite so hard during each session for a while though. Atleast not til the fingers harden up.

Jim

Thanks for the fast reply Jim! Would different strings help any?

Ouch.. got me there.. I am rather a newbie myself. I have only started playing again in the last 5 weeks or so. I only use light acoustic strings.

Maybe someone else will be able to help answer that one for ya. Best of luck

Jim

Thanks for the fast reply Jim! Would different strings help any?

not imo,
maybe a little but with the pain already there you are halfway home!
just keep it up and like he said, maybe take it a little easy at first till you get tougher fingertips. :wink:

Thanks guys! Kinda felt like I was on a roll and could have been perhaps playing something that sounded "OK" by this weekend with a LOT of practice, but guess I'll need to quit pushing so hard at least for a couple/few days..... Bummer though, I was having so much fun!

You might want to try breaking up your practice time into smaller blocks, so instead of practicing fro 2 hours straight do 1/2 hour at a time and take a 15-20 minute break after each session.

It may give your fingers a little time to rest.

It seemed to help me when I was in the same situation.

It does pay to take short breaks, not only your fingertips, but also your wrists, shoulders and mind.

Makes a nice time to check out guitarnoise! 8)

If that doesnt work, which it didnt for me (I practiced for 30-40 minuites and took a break but my fingers were still throbbing), I did what seemed right and after a few tries at a song or playing a few through, i took a couple seconds to stretch and get blood flowing, then went back to it... worked like a charm.

Hey fishrman! Welcome to the World Of Guitar!

When i started, on my first day i strummed with my thumb, and i did that for a couple o' hours. Since i never played so long before, i got a huge blister on the thunb. I wasn't able to play properly(cos of the huuuuuge blister). I haven't changed my strings to lighter ones. I learned on 11s. It was very hard. Bur now my dad is proud of me. Anyway, if u look at my moto at the bottom of my post, you'll get my point. Just don't practice too much. if you are very keen on playing a lot, play for about 20 minutes, rest for 10, and so on. :wink:

When I first started I had blisters on my fingers took strips of first aid tape and put it on each finger kept playing, but you realy need to take breaks.

:D

I've only been playing for 4 months now, on a steel string acoustic. I usually practice 2-3 hours a day. This was a killer in the first month or so, but my fingers tended to stop hurting after that. Unfortunately, I think the tips of your fingers look disgusting forever, as I still leave skin behind on my acoustic's fretboard. Just grin and bear it, I suppose.

I use very light strings - D'Addario 9's - on both my Electrics and my acoustic. I find that even if I'm away from the guitars for a few days, my fingers don't hurt when I get back. Then again, I spend so much time playing guitar, my callouses are so well-developed I could use them instead of fine sandpaper to rub down paintwork.....

"NO PAIN NO GAIN!!!!"

Keep practising, the more you practise, the quicker you'll develope those callouses....

This is something I've taken to heart....someone once said to Jack Nicklaus, "you're not a great golfer, you're just lucky"....to which Jack replied, "I know....and the more I practise, the luckier I get...strange isn't it..."

:D :D :D

Vic